


Gothic Literature Story

by Ohlookaname_5



Category: Original Work
Genre: Gen, I made this a year ago haha, I procrastinated doing it and so I didn't get as far as I wanted to, It's not fully finished and isn't fully what I imagined it to be, This was a gothic literature story I made for my English class, you'll see - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-01
Updated: 2021-03-01
Packaged: 2021-03-13 14:35:09
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,079
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29777622
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ohlookaname_5/pseuds/Ohlookaname_5
Summary: ‘I’ll show them, I will make it to the other side of the forest’ I think as I trudge along the rough, uneven forest floor, the crunching of the leaves underneath my dark blue shoes. The dark green pine trees stood tall, towering over me; I could barely see the flaming orange dancing upon the treetops as the sun slowly crept from the sky...There's a town in the middle of a gigantic forest. No one ever leaves the town, and everyone is warned against leaving. The character is curious about the outside world and wants to venture out into the forest to see what's outside and be free. Everyone warns them against it, but one night they sneak out and head into the forest. The forest manipulates whoever's inside it, showing them their deepest fears and manipulating their realities until they can't tell what's real and what's fake, slowly driving them insane, and trapping them there. The story starts a few days into the character's journey and ends with a sort of cliff-hanger, with the forest showing them one of their deepest fears they had as a child.
Relationships: None





	Gothic Literature Story

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, whoever ends us stumbling across this fic! I made this for an English CAT (Common Assessment Task) where we had to write a gothic literature story, after analysing writing techniques in pieces of gothic literature, as well as study a few gothic literature novels, movies, and short films. It was very fun (and stressful), sadly, I wasn't able to bring this story to its full potential, and write out all the scenarios I imagined. In spite of this, I'm still really proud of what I've written and I hope you enjoy.

‘I’ll show them, I will make it to the other side of the forest’ I think as I trudge along the rough, uneven forest floor, the crunching of the leaves underneath my dark blue shoes. The dark green pine trees stood tall, towering over me; I could barely see the flaming orange dancing upon the treetops as the sun slowly crept from the sky. I was tired and hungry after walking for so long, but I knew I needed to find a safe place to rest before continuing. In the corner of my ear, I hear a low, raspy growl to my left startling me and making me jerk away towards the right, stumbling forward only to trip on a winding tree root and falling to the ground. Whatever it was growled again, this time closer. I quickly jump up and start sprinting deeper into the forest, leaping over jagged rocks, and twisting behind trees, trying to lose and confuse whatever it was chasing me. The harsh wind whipping across my face as I ran made it harder to see where I was going, spikey tree branches slapped my arms and legs drawing blood but I couldn’t stop, I knew that if I stopped now I would never make it out of this forest alive. I don’t know how long the thing pursued me before it slowed down and eventually stopped, the now soft pitter-patter of what might have been paws turning away from me and going back made me stop. Hoping it was gone for good, I slowed down my pace and stood still. I could hear nothing but myself panting and could feel my shoulders heaving and lungs burning as I struggled to take in air. My trembling legs felt like jelly, my arms like limp noodles, and I barely managed to catch myself before falling to the floor, vomiting up the contents of my stomach into a lumpy green puddle on the ground. 

I turned and feel down, lying next to what used to be my lunch before passing out. I awake to a crow pecking at my face and a terrible aching in my head. I let out a pained groan at the crow as I hit it off me, it flies away with an ear-piercing screech making my head pulse in agony. I stay on the ground trying to get a grip on the world around me, my head pounding in like a drum. I slowly try and stand, my legs were sore and aching, they felt as if they could snap if I moved to fast. My eyes sluggishly peeled open to reveal a thin layer of fog surrounding me, the cold air stinging my already aching eyes. Cautiously I hobble forward on the grassy, uneven earth. With every move my brain bashed into the sides of my skull, bruising with every hit. I stick my hand out in front of me and stumble forward a bit longer, hoping I don’t trip on anything. My hand eventually hits the rough bark of a tree, the harsh smell of pine attacked my nose as my sneaker bumps against something below me. The fog has gotten thicker the further I walked, and I needed to squint downwards to see what was a pitch-black toadstool next to a smaller cloud grey one. Maybe it was the lingering fog covering my eyes or the nauseating pounding of my head making me see colours that shouldn’t be there, but after I blinked sporadically, they were still the same dark, foreboding tones. 

I turn my head to the side and see a narrow trail of them dotted along the treeline, a border between me and the forest. I take a deep breath, mustering up the courage to move, and with a whimper, I shuffle forward, following the chain of oddly coloured toadstools before me. I lean my hand against the trees as I wander forward, stopping to catch my breath and to rest my aching legs and throbbing head. After what must’ve been a painful hour of walking, I start to recognise winding trees and toadstools. I hobble on some more, I recognise these trees, the bark feels damp and bumpy beneath my fingers, I reach to the right and stoke the bark of the tree beside it, there’s a familiar hole in the middle of the trunk. I take a step back, my knees wobbling, I realise that I must be in some sort of clearing surrounded by a ring of toadstools. 

My stomach twists as I am reminded of stories my grandma would tell me when I was younger, she would tell tales of men and women being led into the woods by beautiful singing faeries with promises of dreams and riches, they would dance further into the forest, enchanted by lies and bright vibrant lights, only to be trapped in a ring of toadstools, doomed to dance until they dropped. I raise my hand to my damp forehead and wipe away the sweat. My breathing picks up, the small tinge of fear and feeling of something being wrong I’ve had since I ventured into this place only growing stronger. My head pulsated as I was hit with a memory of my school years. I was sitting in class, staring up at the teacher as she explained colours and their different meanings to us. “… and violet symbolises imagination, spirituality, compassion, sensitivity, and mystery. Darker colours such as black and grey can symbolise darker things like power and control for black, and quiet or neutral for grey.” 

I feel sick as I realise what I’ve gotten myself into, bending over I throw up again, heaving and panting. I haven’t eaten since yesterday, nothing comes out but white bile, my throat stings and I let out a wet cough before quickly wiping my mouth with the back of my hand. Behind me I hear the soft, mesmerising melody of a flute. I whip my head around to see multiple different people of all ages calmly dancing towards me, their soulless eyes were blank and empty, they weren’t even people anymore, just dancing husks of what they once were. My throat closes in horror, I’m too terrified to speak or even scream. Without realising it I’ve been backing away from them; I bump into a tree trunk behind me and I freeze for a second before quickly turning around and hobbling out of the clearing and back into the forest.

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome to the end of the story, hope you enjoyed it! 
> 
> If anyone reading this ends us liking it or has constructive criticism or anything like that, feel free to comment, I really enjoy seeing what other people think of my works :)  
> Even if it isn't constructive criticism, comment if you want :) I also just like attention. 
> 
> I hope whoever reads this has a wonderful day/night, and that you're coping well, or as best you can, with the pandemic. Stay safe out there.


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